The lights turn off. Screams fills the room and the excitement builds as hearts race. The speakers blare a deep hum as the sweaty restless bodies around you become still. A light tribal tune travels through the dark room in a hypnotizing motion, almost snake-like, growing louder and higher. The lights flash on with each sudden percussion drop. The tune moves with the bodies of the people, like the synchronization of a snake and his charmer. The tune grows stronger and loud until it suddenly stomps out. The futuristic synth-waves break each other down and ascend off of the under laid sound I can only describe as ray-gun pews. The climatic buildup of sounds contort together in a spiral pattern and Flume releases the drop long awaited by the anxious fans. And just like that Flume opens the show with his futuristic banger "Helix."
Earlier this year I had the opportunity to catch Flume at Coachella with my best friends. The environment was perfect. Flume’s atmospheric music paired seductively with the dark star-lit Coachella sky and the swaying neon palm trees in the distance. As cliché as it sounds Flume took me to a completely different world outside of his music that night, something that no other artist has been able to repeat.
His world tour was a bit different however because of the setting, and oftentimes setting holds a great power in skewing the mood the artist is trying to give off. I definitely felt this at the San Francisco Bill Graham Auditorium. It was a semi-small venue that largely transformed into a cramped cauldron of sweaty bodies pushing and elbowing others to get to the front. My friends and I got stuck behind a group of sky-scraper Berkley frat guys, unable to even see that there was an opening act on the stage. Although we were really close to the front, we decided suffering the unsettling anxiety and claustrophobia to see Flume’s face wasn’t worth it so we moved towards the back.
Something that I’ve had to learn to accept as a hardcore fan girl is that you don’t always have to be in the front to experience the greatest intensity of the live musical experience. If an artist is good at creating a performance with the aid of visuals, lights, and raw energy it doesn’t matter what part of the crowd you are in. That’s exactly what Flume does on his World Tour. Quite honestly I don’t remember the visuals at Coachella, it’s a bit of a blur but I will never forget the visuals on his world tour. Flume paired his songs with the visuals and graphics from his recent album Skin. The trippy geometric-formed designs compliment well with the eccentricity of Skin's tracks. Other visuals take you on a visual trip to glacial caps and pit you against polar bears, resembling the aesthetically-pleasing pages of National Geographic. Others were not as friendly, such as the melting demon visual below he featured with “Wall Fuck.” Obviously used to portray a sinister mood, the demon hauntingly stares into your soul with the chaotic repetitiveness of "Wall Fuck."
Overall his hour and a half show was relatively short by regular concert standards but he definitely didn’t cut corners. He gave a lasting performance that still gives me goosebumps just thinking about it. "Never Be Like You" was sang word for word by the crowd guiltlessly, indulged by even the most fratiest of bros in the crowd. Lorde’s "Tennis Courts Remix" generated the most energy from the crowd with its heavy synths and bass, making it difficult not to dance to. The slow buildup of the closer “You and Me” perfectly alluded to the approaching end of the show, all the while heightening the energy up one last time with the drama of the orchestral strings and the echoing of the vocals. The track is a celestial trip about love and raw passion. This is my favorite Flume track and seeing it live was incredibly beautifully thanks to the display of the passionate music video visuals. It's hard not to feel like a voyeur in this one.
"It's gonna be you, and me."If you’ve never heard Flume’s music besides his stint on the radio with “Never Be Like You,” you are missing out on an incredible artist that brings together a mashup of unorthodox sounds and genres. His music is so versatile you can listen to it in a relaxed or party setting. Unfortunately the US leg of his World Tour is over, but if you have a chance to catch him at SnowGlobe 2016 or any 2017 shows, do yourself a favor and buy tickets. Harley Streten aka Flume's natural ability to put on a vivid display of graphic visuals and uncanny sounds results in an unforgettable sensory experience that goes beyond the average edm show.
